Independent football regulator expects Manchester City appeal to be heard in January

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By Linda Ikeji 14 October 2026, 5:48 pm 0 comments

Independent Football Regulator chair David Kogan has said he expects Manchester City’s appeal against findings of more than 100 breaches of Premier League financial rules to be heard by mid-to-late January.

City have maintained their innocence, and no sanction has been announced. Possible penalties include a substantial points deduction that could lead to relegation, while there has also been speculation about the removal of three Premier League titles won between 2009 and 2018.

Speaking to Times Radio on Wednesday, Kogan emphasised that the appeal would be handled independently of the regulator. “The Premier League have said that they want to get this resolved within the season, and actually, of course, it’s not the Premier League; it’s an independent commission that’s actually going to hear this, made of three retired either judges or lawyers,” he said.

“My understanding is that there is a prescribed process, which is 12 weeks, and so people are assuming this will actually be heard by the middle or the end of January. But as I say, it’s not our process, it’s that of the Premier League’s independent commission. What I don’t think we can do is take any judgment until we’re quite clear.”

Kogan also said he would resign if political interference affected any future investigation of City by the regulator. His remarks followed criticism of Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who said he would be “really concerned” if City’s Abu Dhabi owners left the club following the verdict.

Downing Street subsequently insisted that nobody was “above the rules”. Burnham, who served as Greater Manchester mayor from 2017 until June 2026, has since published details of his dealings with City’s leadership. “We’ve had absolutely no interference from anybody since we created the regulator a year ago,” Kogan said. “We cannot, when regulating football, be subject to political interference on decisions we make about owners, directors or anything else.”

“And I won’t actually be prepared to run an organisation which is subject to that degree of interference,” he added. Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca said last week that he “completely trusts” the club and believes it will win its appeal. City lead the Premier League with six victories from six matches after beating Liverpool 3-0 last weekend.